1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a combustor, a method of supplying a fuel to the combustor, and a method of modifying the combustor.
2. Description of the Related Art
Among the power-generating plants that support the electric power required for industrial applications are gas turbine power plants fueled by fossil resources such as natural gas or petroleum. These gas turbine power plants, fueled by fossil resources, emit carbon dioxide (CO2) that is a global warming substance, and are therefore required to have their power-generating efficiency improved more than ever before. Methods of improving power-generating efficiency include enhancing the temperature of the combustion gas emitted from a gas turbine combustor. Enhancing the temperature of the combustion gas, however, exponentially increases the quantities of nitrogen oxides (NOx) contained in the combustion gas, each of these nitrogen oxides being an environmentally harmful substance. It is an important technical challenge, therefore, how to reduce NOx while at the same time achieving higher power-generating efficiency.
Accordingly, JP-2003-148734-A discloses a technique for disposing an air hole plate between a fuel nozzle and a combustion chamber and blowing out jets of fuel and jets of air formed at an outer circumferential side of the fuel flows, inside air holes provided in the air hole plate, into the chamber. According to the combustor of JP-2003-148734-A, NOx can be reduced by enhancing dispersibility of the fuel with respect to the air.